As the East Bay’s electric vehicle capital, the City of Fremont is proud to have hosted a very successful electric vehicle ride-and-drive event on Saturday, August 9 at the Pacific Commons Shopping Center. With nearly 300 electric vehicle test drives and more than 500 event attendees, the Fremont “Experience Electric­—The Better Ride” event provided residents with the opportunity to view and test drive the newest EVs on the market.

Signage for Experience Electric

 

“The residents of Fremont were a knowledgeable and energetic group of test drivers. We had folks showing up before we opened and many staying right up until after we closed,” said event partner Maureen Blanc of Charge Across Town. “It was, by far, one of our more successful events.” Vehicles test driven included the Nissan Leaf, Ford Focus, Ford CMax Energi, Ford Fusion Energi, BMW i3, Chevy Volt, and Chevy Spark and Toyota RAV4 EV. Also on display were the Fiat 500e, Cadillac ELR, Smart Car and Via Motors Shuttle Van, as well as the Fremont-based Tesla Model S and GenZe electric scooter and e-bike.

Via Motors Shuttle Van

 

To date, there are currently more than 26,000 electric vehicle drivers in the Bay Area, 1,752 of which are City of Fremont residents. With 14 percent of Alameda County’s total population, Fremont residents drive 31 percent of all of the EVs in the county. In fact, Fremont’s 94539 zip code is home to more electric vehicles than any other single zip code in California.

Not only are EVs gaining in popularity, but they are also becoming increasingly competitive in terms of cost with conventional vehicles, and may qualifyfor the California Clean Vehicle Rebate of up to $2,500 as well as a Federal Tax Credit of up to $7,500. Electric vehicles cost about one-fourth the amount of electricity to travel the same distance as a conventional gas vehicle, and they emit one-third fewer greenhouse gases in the process. When charged at home with a solar electric system rather than from the electric grid, these vehicles become GHG emission-free. Plus, EV drivers in California get the added bonus of the Clean Air Vehicle sticker, allowing them access to HOV (carpool) lanes.

To learn more about electric vehicles, visit www.fremont.gov/EVs.

A list of upcoming Bay Area “Experience Electric” events can be found online at http://energycenter.org/experienceelectric/events.